PolyMara’s co-founders form the backbone of the organization and provide inspiration and leadership.
James T. Holden
President and CEO
James 'Jamie' Holden, J.D., M.B.A., is PolyMara’s President and CEO, and also serves as a Director. Mr. Holden has executive-level experience in the biochemical, pharmaceutical, chemical and medical device industries arising from roles throughout his career, including extensive work with bioeconomy, environmental sustainability, and zero-waste process development. He has successfully created, implemented, and delivered on all relevant business activities (e.g., business planning, operations, sales and marketing, resource allocation, and organizational development) throughout his career. Notably, he led a medical software startup from formation to a USD $40 million sale within twenty-four (24) months of establishment, and was later responsible for the negotiation, drafting, and closing of various global commercial agreements for approximately USD $3.5 billion in recurrent annual spending. He also has a long history of licensing and managing intellectual property, having negotiated, closed, and managed intellectual property licenses and other agreements accounting for approximately USD $750 million in annual cash flow.
Mr. Holden is also experienced at forming, building out, and running extensive business organizations in the technology and manufacturing sectors, including hiring and overseeing financial, sales, and scientific personnel. He has served in senior business and legal roles in several global corporations, with a history of successful coordination and oversight of business and legal operations in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, and Israel. He has also successfully secured funding from a variety of public and private sources for the companies he has served and maintains an extensive network in the private equity and investment banking communities. Mr. Holden currently serves as Associate General Counsel and Head of Compliance and ESG Programs at InterDigital, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDCC).
Mr. Holden is a graduate of Michigan State University (B.A., Political Science, 1986), DePaul University (J.D., Law, 1989), and the University of Delaware (M.B.A., International Business, 2022). His role as President and CEO includes primary responsibility for day-to-day operations, governance and financial controls, protection and monetization of intellectual property rights, deal creation with partners and investors, and internationalization and technology transfers. He is based in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.
Catherine Murray-Green, Ph.D.
Chief Strategy Officer
Catherine 'Cait' Murray-Green, M.Sc., Ph.D., is the Chief Strategy Officer for PolyMara, and also serves as a Director. Dr. Murray-Green is the founder of a management consultancy, Strategic Scientific Consulting Ltd, (www.strategicscientific.com) and has worked with commercial scientific and research organizations throughout her professional career. She began her career selling and supporting computational chemistry and informatics software in the pharmaceutical and medical device R&D industry. In addition to these areas, she also has extensive experience with environmental sciences, developing a large network of companies and individuals ideally placed to assist clients with their growth and expansion. Dr. Murray-Green’s previous roles have included operational roles for Biovia and deCODE genetics, business development for NERC, and public sector grant funding for Scottish Enterprise.
She has extensive entrepreneurial experience in the sustainable materials space. She was the founder of CuanTec, Ltd. (www.cuantec.com), a bio-plastic start-up in rural Scotland developing compostable food packaging with a circular economy solution and who have recently launched product in the marketplace. She served as CEO for the first four (4) operational years of CuanTec’s existence, developed the company’s business plan, and helped raise over £2.5 million in equity and grant funding. Additionally, she was the co-founder of EcoCascade CIC (www.eco-cascade.com), a not-for-profit company working to create a primary processing facility for the seaweed cultivation industry in northern Scotland. She has extensive networks across Scotland and Europe and within bioplastics.
She is an expert assessor for the Horizon Europe EIC Accelerator, a source of innovation grants for entrepreneurs from EU. She has extensive knowledge of the environmental sector across Europe and understanding of the funding landscape.
Dr. Murray-Green is a graduate of the University of Surrey (B.Sc., Computer-Aided Chemistry and Chemistry, 1993), Queen’s University Belfast (Ph.D., Chemistry, 1997), and the University of the Highlands and Islands (M.Sc., Sustainable Rural Development, 2022). Dr. Murray-Green provides scientific and ethos guidance and support, as well as contributing her management experience to the company’s operations. She is based in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom.